lobular, sexually dimorphic in mouse

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/51/Illu_quiz_hn_02.jpg

The submandibular is the first major salivary gland to develop in the embryo, followed by the neighbouring sublingual and then the parotid.[PMID:17336109]

Either of two major salivary glands situated in the neck near the lower edge of each side of the mandible and emptying into the submandibular duct. [TFD][VHOG]

uberon

glandula submandibularis, submaxillary gland, maxillary gland

The most common oral glands in mammals are the salivary glands. There are usually three primary pairs of salivary glands, named for their approximate positions: mandibular (submandibular or submaxillary), sublingual, and parotid.[well established][VHOG]

UBERON:0001736

In humans, they account for 70% of the salivary volume and weigh about 15 grams. [WP,unvetted], in mice, submandibular gland development initiates as a thickening of the oral epithelium; around E12 an initial (single) epithelial bud on a stalk grows into a condensing neural crest-derived mesenchyme; clefts in the epithelium result in 3-5 epithelial buds at E13.5, and branching morphogenesis occurs with continued proliferation, successive rounds of cleft formation, duct elongation, and duct lumen formation, so that by E14 the gland is highly branched (multi-lobed); functional differentiation, with the appearance of proacinar cells and secretory products begins after E15 and continues to birth; acinar differentiation continues postnatally with final differentiation of the granular convoluted tubules at puberty[MGI:anna], In mouse, multilobed and lobulated, on the ventral midline of the neck

The term submandibular as used in humans, is incorrect due the difference in topography of these structures[http://www.avdc.org]

• submandibular duct

• submandibular ganglion

• submandibular gland primordium

• submandibular duct

• epithelium of submandibular gland
• mesenchyme of submandibular gland
• submandibular duct